The present invention relates generally to attachment combs used with powered hair clippers and trimmers for regulating the length of hair retained by a customer after the hair is cut. More specifically, the present invention relates to an attachment comb configured for being magnetically secured to the clipper blade.
Attachment combs are commonly used with powered hair cutting devices such as clippers or trimmers collectively referred to as hair clippers. Conventional hair clippers often are supplied with multiple attachment combs of varying sizes. Each size of comb has a plurality of teeth, and the length of the teeth vary from comb to comb, and all combs of a set typically attach to the clipper near the blades using a snap or friction fit provided by clips or tabs. An operator typically changes attachment combs several times over the course of a haircut or hair styling event, depending on the desired length of hair. It is common for the clips of conventional attachment combs to break, rendering the particular comb unable or difficult to attach to the corresponding clipper blade.
As a result, attachment combs are known which are attached to the respective hair clipper blade using magnets. Examples of such combs are described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,344,520 and US Patent Publication No. 2009/0019706. However, such combs have operational defects or have otherwise not been commercially accepted. One reason is that heat is known to deenergize magnets. A common operational aspect of hair clippers is that the blades become relatively hot during use, and this heat has been found to reduce the holding power of the magnets in conventional combs, causing the combs to detach from the blades during clipping. Naturally, this problem causes inefficiencies in the hair clipping operation, which hair care professionals wish to avoid.
Another problem with conventional hair clipper attachment combs having magnets is that the configuration of the clipper blade to which the comb is attached varies between clipper models, and between clippers produced by a variety of manufacturers. As such, conventional magnetically attached combs have not been securely held on the blades due to the positioning of the magnet on the comb body. Such positioning may be acceptable for some clipper blades, but is not universally acceptable over a variety of clipper blades.
Accordingly, there exists a need for an improved attachment comb that is magnetically attached to the clipper blade.